CL 127/OD/4

Council

Registration

As the list of Delegates and Observers appended to the Council Report includes only the names of those who have registered as participants, including Permanent Representatives, those who have not yet registered are kindly requested to do so at the Turkish Registration Centre on the ground Floor of Building A.

The following exhibits are on display in the Atrium between Buildings A and B:

• The Fiftieth Anniversary of the Food for Peace Programme of the United States of America
• Desert Locust Emergency.

International Year of Rice (IYR) 2004 - Atrium Exhibition

Winning photographs from the IYR Global Photography Contest “Rice is Life” are on display in the FAO Atrium. Over 450 photographs qualified in the contest, with entries received from 53 countries around the world. Three winners were chosen in the Amateur and Professional Categories, and 19 entries were short-listed for exhibiting.

Information on the IYR global campaign can be found at the IYR exhibit booth in the FAO Atrium. Material including: posters, folders, fact sheets, the International Rice Commission (IRC) Newsletter, etc. is available in five languages.

Disbursing Office

Members of the Council are informed that the disbursement of terminal expenses will be effected in Rooms D.178 and D.180 according to the following schedule:

Booking of Meeting Rooms

Given that meeting room facilities are very limited, requests will be examined on a first-come, first-served basis, and availability will only be confirmed 24 hours in advance.

All requests/queries should be addressed to Mr. R Rodriguez, Room A.276, ext. 53075 or 55872; (Tel. 0657053075 from outside the FAO buildings).

Internet Café Service, including Documents on Internet

This service will be available for Delegates and Observers in the Atrium, between Building A and Building B from 08.00 to 18:00 hours.

The computers in this area will allow access to FAO and other Internet sites as well as offering the possibility of logging on to personal e-mail accounts.

Council Documents in Arabic, Chinese, English, French and Spanish are available on the FAO Internet Web Pages, http://www.fao.org and can be accessed by clicking on the link at the bottom of the home page, or by typing: http://internal.fao.org/bodies/council/cl127/cl127fao.htm.

Cloakroom

Cloakroom facilities are available in the Atrium.

Use of Mobile Telephones

Delegations are reminded that mobile telephones should be switched off during meetings.

Slovak Business Centre

The Slovak Business Centre (Ground Floor, Building B) has a small number of PCs for use by participants, as well as photocopying and fax facilities. Participants with laptops may plug them into a phone/fax modem at the Centre. Business Centre assistants will be present to supervise use of room facilities. Delegates are kindly requested to refrain from asking document desk staff and messengers in the Red Room to make photocopies and to avail themselves of the photocopying facilities in the Business Centre.

World Agriculture Information Center - WAICENT Stand

FAO's hypermedia electronic information services accessible over the Internet are featured at the WAICENT stand, which is located in the Korean Conference Centre area, at the entrance of the Red and Green Rooms (1^st floor Building A). Delegates are invited to visit the area, where they can benefit from assisted demonstrations of the information services, or use one of the computers and explore for themselves.

Written Statements by Delegations

Delegates intending to read a written statement, and who wish to help ensure that the impact of their words is equally strong in all languages, are requested to read at a reasonable speed and to hand in a copy of the text in advance to one of the messengers in the meeting room. The statement will be photocopied and distributed to the Interpreters before it is delivered. Such a precaution will also help to minimize errors, especially when quoting figures and proper names.

Telephone and Telefax Facilities for Delegates

Telephones for internal or Rome calls are located in the Slovak Centre (Ground Floor of Building B), and in the corridor of the first floor of Building A. Before making calls from the Rome area dial “0” and wait for the external dial tone before dialing the number.

Incoming telephone calls for Delegates and Observers are received by the telephone receptionist in the Delegates’ Telephone Service (telephone numbers 06/570-56607 or 52828). Every effort will be made to locate Delegates or Observers receiving incoming calls. However, should this not be possible, a message will be taken and left at the Documents Desk. Outgoing long-distance calls may be booked through the telephone receptionist in Room A.235bis. Telefax facilities are available in Room A.235bis. Apart from the actual cost of the telephone call to transmit the message, a Service Charge of e1 per page will be levied.

A fax transmission service is also available for a flat fee of €1 per page in the Slovak Business Centre (ground floor of Building B). International phone calls can also be made using calling cards, on sale at the newsstand in front of the Banca Intesa. Calls can be made at discount rates by using these cards on the phones in the Slovak Business Centre.

Postal and Courier/DHL Service for Delegates

The Italian Post Office, located on the Ground Floor of Building B (adjacent to the bank office, Banca Intesa will provide normal services for stamps, parcels, telex, telegrams, registered mail, money exchange, postal/money orders, etc. The Post Office is open from 08.25 to 15.30 hours Monday to Friday.

To contact the DHL office, located in Building C (Room C.005) which will remain open from 10.30 to 18.00 hours from Monday to Friday and until closure of Council session on Saturday, dial extension 53767. To call DHL assistance (clients), dial 800 345345 or consult Internet World track : www.dhl.it.

In addition, an Express Courier Service is available for private and official despatches/deliveries within Rome, non-stop from 08.30 to 16.30 hours between Monday to Friday. Please call ext. 54881 or 55103 for further information (Tel. 0657054881 or 0657055103 from outside the FAO buildings).

Banking Service

The Banca Intesa bank (Ground Floor Building B) has reserved two special counters for the use of Delegates and Observers attending the Council. This service will operate from Monday 22 to Friday 26 November 2004 (08.35 to 17.30 hours). Bank opening hours for other customers will be 8.35 to 16.35 from Monday to Friday. Cash dispensers are also available on the Ground Floor of Building B.

FAO Bookshop

A sales point for the latest books and CD-ROMs published by FAO, as well as medals, coins and gifts with the FAO logo is at your disposal on the ground floor of Building B, in front of the Banca Intesa, from 9:00 am to 16:00 pm.
A 50% discount on publications is granted to Participants and Delegates during the Council.

FAO publications can also be ordered from:
Sales and Marketing Group, Information Division
On-line catalogue: http://www.fao.org/catalog/giphome.htm
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel. 06 5705 3597; 06 5705 3624; 06 5705 3215-Fax: 06 5705 3360

Restaurant/Coffee Bars

In addition to the Polish Bar on the ground floor in Building A and the cafeteria and restaurant on the 8th floor of Building C, a lounge area and bar service is available in the Atrium between Buildings A and B.

Prayer Room

A Prayer Room is available for use by Council participants in Room A.250 Ter.

First Aid - Medical Emergencies

For medical emergencies dial 30.

For normal medical requirements, please dial 53577 or make your way to the Medical Service, Room B.162, First Floor of Building B, which will be available during the Council hours.

FAO is a smoke-free area. Smoking is not permitted inside any of the FAO Buildings.